Feefo takes it attack on open review sites to the US

Feedback engine Feefo is expanding into the US to take on ‘open’ review platforms such as TripAdvisor and Yelp.

The firm is opening a New York office with a strategy to continue to challenge the dominance of sites where it claims fake and misleading reviews are misinforming consumers and damaging the reputations of businesses.

Feefo, which claims a 100% verified feedback model, is building a team dedicated to the US market.

The company is developing ‘Feefo 2.0’, a next-generation review platform focused upon innovative social integration, data-driven marketing and harnessing rich media. The revamped Feefo will be launched globally later in the year.

The company is in Chicago this week at the world’s largest e-commerce trade event, IRCE, to assert its position as the most trusted feedback provider, having recently secured global partnerships with Bing and Yahoo!.

These agreements build on the review service’s established relationship with Google, with customer ratings from Feefo now appearing in paid search results across all major search engines.

Feefo already works with a number of US companies, including Expedia, GANT and Hiscox.

Chief executive Andrew Mabbutt said: “Customer feedback is already an established industry in America, but the market is saturated with platforms that allow anyone to leave a review, regardless of compromising affiliations or whether or not they have genuinely done business with the company being appraised.

“We firmly believe that Feefo offers something different, and there is a growing list of world-class brands that agree with us.

“The direct influence of reviews on consumer purchase behaviour can no longer be ignored. By using Feefo, businesses sign up for complete transparency, which in turn, inspires confidence and a commitment to customer service.”